The outward appearance of a portable computing device, including its design and its heft, is important to a user of the portable computing device, as the outward appearance contributes to the overall impression that the user has of the portable computing device. Dimensions of the portable computing device may be particularly important to a user.
One design challenge associated with the manufacture of portable computing devices is the design of internal components as they relate to an enclosure of the portable computing device. When the design of the enclosure is selected to be relatively compact, the internal components within the enclosure must be designed and configured to fit within the compact space of the enclosure. Internal component functionality should not be compromised to because of a lack of implementation space. Keyboard backlighting in particular is difficult to accomplish when space is limited by dimensions of the portable computing device. The lack of space can contribute to non-uniform light distribution. To compensate for poor uniformity, excessive power can be used to produce more light, thereby reducing battery life.
Therefore, it is desirable for keyboard backlighting for a portable computing device to have good uniformity and to have a compact configuration to allow integration into relatively compact volumes.